#tourism

Canada’s biggest province boasts a collection of roads that vary from the straightest and busiest in the country to some of its most winding and scenic, where rocky shield terrain gives way to thousands of lakes and incredible vistas. We asked four influencers / motorcycle journalists for their favourite scenic rides in Ontario and what they shared might surprise you.

Most motorcyclists I know have a special fondness for Halloween and all its imagery. Maybe it’s a macabre coping mechanism that helps us deal with the grim side of the road. There is just something about death that bikers like to defy. Perhaps it’s just part of our rebel spirit. We’re going to ride until we die, and maybe a couple of days after.

Let’s be honest: these Church of MO features have largely become reposts of Gabe Ets-Hokin stories. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; Gabe’s a great guy and an even better writer (it takes talent to make a jacket review hilarious!). As they say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and so we bring to you today another Gabe story from the MO archives. This one a travel piece in one of the planet’s most lovely places, Tuscany, aboard an ideal travel companion: the 2006 Vespa GTS250ie. 

Arriving on the Isle of Man for the TT during the somewhat quieter Practice Week allows for a visiting motorcyclist to make number of adjustments. Not the least of which is that you are no longer on Earth, that place where most people don’t like you. You are now in a parallel reality, where folks are warm and accommodating to bikers, and the average citizen knows that Bruce Anstey is racing a Honda RC213V-S this year. On the IOM, motorbikes are abundant and admired, the beer and air are pure, meaning-of-life vistas greet you at every turn, and race bikes achieve astounding speeds on public roads. All dogs may go to heaven, but we go here, and it’s better.

Almost every year I make a motorcycle pilgrimage up from the U.S. to Canada, and the reason is simple – unbeatable riding. The Eastern United States has some incredible riding, to be sure. There’s the famous Tail of the Dragon in North Carolina, and also the state-straddling Blue Ridge Parkway. Even in my home state of Ohio we have the infamous and snaky Triple Nickel OH 555. Yet as incredible as each of these roads are, there is a wildness, an openness, and ever-surprising element to Canada, in this case specifically Ontario, that can’t be beat.

If you’re desiring to roll some serious mileage on two wheels but the roadways leading to all the familiar haunts (Sturgis, Daytona, Laguna Seca, et al.) are seeming somewhat lackluster, the cure may be to ride outside your national comfort zone and travel abroad. A foreign escapade brings with it a litany of uncertainties, one being insurance and how to make sure you’re covered in the worst-case scenario, a long way from home in a place where English isn’t the ubiquitous language.

For motorcycle road racing enthusiasts, the Isle of Man TT is perhaps the biggest spectacle our sport has to offer. In my opinion, it’s an even bigger spectacle than attending a MotoGP race. The action, drama, speed and aura of the Mountain course is what excites me about the race. And it’s the increased level of danger a natural road course entails that makes it an event I have no interest in participating in. It’s by that same token that I rate the athletes who do tackle the TT as heroes.